The Jingbirok, written in Hanmun, is a first hand account of the Imjin War written by high ranking Joseon scholar-official Ryu Seong-ryong. Party to high leveldecision making on the allied Ming-Joseon side and able to access all Joseon records, Ryu Seong-ryong's Jingbirok has become an invaluable source in the study of the conflict, and Chinese-Korean-Japanese relations. In 1969 the Jingbirok was listed as the 132nd of the National Treasures of South Korea.
The writing of the Jingbirok
Ryu Seong-ryong
Ryu Seong-ryong was born in Uiseong, in Gyeongsang province, during the Korean Joseon Dynasty, to a yangban family of the Pungsan Ryu clan. Passing the Samsai level of the Gwageocivil service examination in 1564, and the Mungwa level in 1566, Ryu rose through the ranks of the scholar-official bureaucracy holding various positions including Jwauijeong and Ijo Panseo. At the time of the 1592 Japanese invasion of Korea Ryu held the position of a provincial Dochechalsa. During the war Ryu was appointed Yeonguijeong, and it was in this capacity that he helped direct the Joseon defences, being responsible for all Joseon military units and leaders, including Yi Sun-sin and Gwon Yul. After the war in 1598, Ryu was ousted from office by factional infighting, although he was later rehabilitated he refused to serve again in high office. The Jingbirok was written and compiled at this time by Ryu in his home village, now preserved in the Hahoe Folk Village, in today's Andong, North Gyeongsang Province.
Aim of the Jingbirok
Ryu Seong-ryong wrote the Jingbirok in order to prevent such an invasion from happening again, reflecting on the mistakes. In the preface he writes that during the conflict the Joseon state suffered "the loss of three capitals, and collapse everywhere" reflecting on his own role in this he wrote that he was "not up to the task the nation entrusted, the ills that nation suffered was because of threats not grasped, this cannot be swept away, nor can death atone for this guilt". Ryu placed the blame for the disaster suffered by Joseon on his own inadequate emphasis on national security, and was therefore resolved to properly document hard lessons dearly paid for, with the hope that following generations could avoid the mistakes that he had made. Although the Jingbirok includes details of Japanese atrocities, the focus of the Jingbirok is on Joseon failures, and Ryu is harsher in his assessment of his own side than he is of the enemy.
Publication history
The Jingbirok was written in Hanmun, therefore it was as equally accessible to the classically educated scholars of China, Japan and Vietnam as it was to classically educated Koreans.
Structure
The early form of the Jingbirok was completed by the time of the 37th year of King Seonjo's reign and consisted of sixteen scrolls and a coda:
Scrolls One and Two, are written in the form of an annal, being a chronology from 1586 to 1598 of events between the Joseon-Ming allies and the Japanese
Scrolls Three to Five, Roots, background leading up to the invasion
Scrolls Six to Fourteen, Jin-Sa Records, documents, orders and proclamations made by the author as prime minister
Scrolls Fifteen to Sixteen, Military transcripts, transcripts and the author's correspondence between 1595 and 1598 regarding the conflict
Coda, A Record of the Crisis, a record of events during the conflict
By 1633 this had evolved into a widely read two volume format known as the Seoaejipconsisting of the Jingibrok and Ryu Seong-ryong's The Anthology of Seoae. In 1647 the Jingibrok was issued as a single stand alone volume.
